anchor: a step towards resolving saudi arabia revealed a deal could be reached soon to end the land and sea blockade in qatar. ♪ i'm rob matheson. this is al jazeera. also coming up. >> this situation is urgent. if we don't act now, the future will be very bleak. anchor: a call for immediate and covid-19 infections threaten the worst for the struggling economy. president donald trump orders the withdrawal of most u.s.

troops in somalia are, raising questions about the fight. bangladesh begins sending refugees to an isolated island in what's being seen as a forced relocation. ♪ the mayor of kuwait says he's happy with talks to end the gulf crisis after saudi arabia's foreign said he's hopeful the deal could be reached to end the bitter dispute with qatar. it's been three years since they imposed a land, sea, and air blockade on qatar. but the foreign ministers say all parties want to reach a final agreement after holding constructive talks. reporter: crucial days ahead for gulf nations, talks aimed at ending the three and a half your

blockade and qatar seems to have achieved progress. kuwait's foreign minister, whose country has been mediating an end to the crisis says he's confident. >> constructive and fruitful talks have taken place recently, where all the parties have stressed their desire to reach a final agreement and resolution to preserve the region's stability and harmony. within this context, we express our appreciation. reporter: qatar's foreign minister says he also remains optimistic about the prospect of a deal. >> we have achieved certain progress at a certain point in time more than a year ago, and then things had slowed down. and right now, there are some movements that we hope this will put an end for this crisis, because we see and we believe,

actually, that gulf unity is very important for the security of the region for the stability of that region, and for the sake of our people. this needless crisis needs to end. reporter: a few hours after the kuwaiti and qatari statements, saudi arabia's foreign minister also said significant progress has been made, and all sides are close to reaching an agreement. >> we hope that this progress can lead to a final agreement, which looks in reach. and i can say i am somewhat optimistic that we are close to finalizing an the agreement between all the nations in the dispute to come to a resolution that we think will be satisfactory to all. reporter: the gulf cooperation council has welcomed the news. in a statement, it said the development -- the strength of the gcc and its ability to

overcome all obstacles. the new developments, new days after the u.s. president's syrian advisor, jared kushner, made a visit to the region. he held talks. the visit was widely seen as a last ditch effort by the trump administration to end the land, sea, an air blockade that was imposed on qatar in june, 2017. the blockading countries severed diplomatic ties and issued a list of 13 demands for qatar to implement. they include downgrading ties with iran, closing a turkish military base, and shutting down al jazeera. qatar dismissed the demands as a violation of its sovereignty. the u.s. has been trying to end

the blockade, worried it might undermine its effortsto contain iran's influence -- efforts to contain iran's influence in the region. american officials have been hoping saudi arabia would open its airspace to qatari flights. a move the trump administration believes would deny iran an estimated $100 million in annual fees qatar pays to fly over its airspace. the coming days and weeks will show if the rival nations are ready to set aside their differences, or if the wounds of the blockade might take longer to heal. anchor: secretary of state mike pompeo says washington is optimistic the deadlock will end, but didn't say went. >> -- when. >> we are very hopeful that the dispute between the saudi's and qatari's can be resolved. we hope so because we think that's important for peace

throughout the middle east. the most important, we think it's the right thing for the people in each of those countries. we're going to keep working to facilitate conversations and dialogue. anchor: u.s. president-elect joe biden says americans need urgent help to get through the coming months as coronavirus cases surge nationwide. biden's urging congress to act quickly and prevent further damage to a battered economy. this comes as jobs data shows a slowdown in hiring. >> this situation is urgent. if we don't act now, the future will be very bleak. americans need help and they needed now. and they need more to come earlier next year. but i must tell you, i must -- i'm encouraged by the bipartisan efforts around a $900 billion package for relief. it's a bipartisan effort. congress, as they work out the details of this relief package,

are going to have to focus on resources for direct public health responses to covid-19. anchor: kristen saloomey is joining me now from delaware, joe biden's home state. this was a downbeat assessment by the president-elect, wasn't it? kristen: it really was. he painted a dire situation based on the recent economic data to come out and attempted to tie that into the situation facing many working-class americans. while there was some job growth in november, the fact is the country has lost some 10 million jobs since the start of the pandemic and many of those people who lost their jobs are now seeing their unemployment benefits dry up. they are set to expire before the end of the year if congress doesn't act. and that's why things are so urgent. you've got one out of four small businesses here closing their

doors and covid infections are researching around the country. hospitalizations are up. deaths are up. because of that, more restrictions on businesses are expected in the coming weeks. and that will make things more difficult. in terms of what that means for the working-class, as biden pointed out, not only have many of them lost jobs, but they've also lost health insurance. and many are at risk of losing their homes, as well. one of six renters are behind on the rent. there's been protections put in place. those are due to expire, as well. the president-elect is saying congress needs to act immediately. he did express optimism, as we heard there, that some relief would be coming and making its way through congress in the form of that nearly $1 trillion. aid package but he says that even that won't be enough. he's predicting that more stimulus will be needed. he's attempting to reassure the american public in saying that

as soon he's inaugurated on january 20, he plans to introduce more stimulus packages, try to pass more aid for the american people and businesses. but of course, he'll have to work with congress in order to make that happen. rob: thank you very much indeed. want to bring in robert scott, senior international economist with the economic policy institute. he's joining us live via skype. good to have you with us. thank you indeed. let's talk about the unemployment numbers. is there anything which is a surprise? robert: i think the surprise is the rate at which job growth decelerated. it slowed down from about 600,000 jobs in october two just around two to 50,000 jobs in -- 250,000 jobs in november. and that suggests with the rapid increase in the covid pandemic, with hospitals filling up and

businesses shutting down around the country, we can well look forward to a possibility of a return to recession in december and the first quarter of 2021. rob: forgive me for interrupting you. the background to those numbers is the fact the unemployment rate fell from 6.7% -- to 6.7% from 6.9%. i'm reading one of the concerns is that's because a lot of people, having been out of work for so long, are essentially giving up all effort to try to find work. how legitimate a concern is that, you think? robert: absolutely, top concern. that unemployment number, frankly, is a mirage. our data suggests there are 25 million workers in the united states who have been hurt by the recession. the unemployment rate under counts the numbers of unemployed in many ways. my colleague, heidi schuerholz,

has listed them all. the number is between 25 million and 26 million workers, those who have dropped out of the labor force, as well as those on reduced wages and hours because of the covid pandemic. these are the workers who need help. that's 15% of our entire labor force. rob: joe biden was saying he was encouraged by the bipartisan efforts to bring together some sort of stimulus package, or at least the first part of one. his his encouragement or is his belief -- is his encouragement or is his belief properly placed? robert: i think this is going to be a change in approach for both republicans and democrats. no matter what happens in the georgia elections on january 5, biden is going to have to present bipartisan approaches to governing when he comes in, even if he has a narrow senate majority.

he's going to need republican support. so he's going to have to look for measures that will attract support from both sides of the aisle. that's what he's done in this instance. rob: the backdrop to all of this is the spread of covid-19. do you think things are going to change significantly once a vaccine comes in? and is it likely that it's going to happen quickly? robert: i think it will happen, but the way in which we get the virus under control really has to focus on public health measures. the virus will control how quickly the economy shrinks or grows. and the best way to control the virus right now is through widespread use of masks, and other public health measures, social distancing. and if we practice this aggressively, we can get the virus under control before we vaccinate the rest of the population. we're only going to be vaccinating 20 million, 30

million people a month. this is a country of over 300 million people, so there's a long way to go to go to get the population vaccinated. rob: robert scott, as always, we appreciate your time. thank you very much indeed. robert: thank you. rob: nearly all american troops in somalia will soon be leaving. president donald trump has ordered their withdrawal as part of his plan to reduce u.s. involvement in cap or terrorism abroad. it comes after announcements last month to draw down troops in afghanistan and iraq. heidi joe castro has more from washington, d.c. heidi: we know the total number of troops in somalia currently is around 700. while that number may not be large, the pentagon has long considered this mission against al-shabaab in assisting this emollient government to be a cornerstone in the u.s. policy against al qaeda and its affiliates around the world. and the pentagon statement announcing this withdrawal takes

pains to say that these trips will be relocated to neighboring nations of somalia and cross-border operations may yet continue and the statement does say the u.s. is not abandoning its african allies. of course, this does follow on the heels of president trump's decision last month to also draw down troops in afghanistan and in iraq down to 2500 u.s. military troops in either of those countries. that is set to take effect by january 15. rob: still ahead on al jazeera, if the 0-0 will allow aid -- ethiopia will allow a groups in. -- aid groups in. box office battle. why a major cinema chain is in talks with one or brothers studio. -- warner bros. studio. ♪

meteorologist: hello. we've got stormy weather across the moment. as we go on through the weekend, that what or whether sweeps up towards the mid atlantic states, gradually rolls up towards new york. snow on the northern flank of that, centimeters of snow, anywhere from new york through new england into the eastern side of canada. dry weather does come back behind. crisp sunshine for many. sunshine towards the southwest of the u.s., some parts of california with strong santa ana winds, as dry winds of the mountains. we are looking at increased fire risk here over the next couple of days. red flag warnings in force in southern california. some what or whether north.

-- wetter weather north. pieces of snow towards ontario, quebec. southern parts of the u.s. a good deal dry, but a few showers in play the next day or so. showers continuing across the western side of the caribbean, wetter weather pushing towards honduras, nicaragua, as well as belize. ♪ >> in 1958, tre was famous speech in al -- algeria. but he cld not hold back the tide of algerian independence or keep economies in africa and the pacific. in the final episode of the series, al jazeera explores how today.tter fight still resonates the london tears: french decolonization, on al jazeera.

♪ ♪ rob: you're watching al jazeera. the emir of kuwait says he is pleased. the saudi foreign minister said all the foreign nations involved are close to finalizing an agreement. he was president-elect joe biden's urging congress to pass a coronavirus aid built to help millions of americans struggling during the pandemic. he's wanting 12 million people could lose their unemployment benefits if it's not improved by the end of the month -- approved by the end of the month. president donald trump ordered

the withdrawal from most u.s. troops in somalia. the drawdown is part of trump's plan to reduce u.s. involvement in counterterrorism abroad. the u.k. and the eu still haven't managed to work at a brexit deal with less than four weeks to go until britain's transition period ends. the eu's chief negotiator says they agreed to pause talks because the conditions for a deal haven't been met. british prime minister boris johnson expects to hold negotiations with the european president -- negotiation president on saturday. they clash on fishing rights and trade rules. neither side seems willing to back down. reporter: they only have so much time with which to guarantee a trade agreement between the two parties. and with those two particular points that you mentioned, the competition rules, as well as the issue on fishing rights, as

well, they seem to be stuck on those two particular issues. with the competition rules, those are of particular importance to the eu. one of the sacred rules the blockade has is that -- block has is any country that wishes to do a free trade deal cannot use state subsidies in order to boost companies and sort of cause and interruption in competition rules, as well. there has to be on a level playing field, as it were. that is an issue in which the u.k. has faced because in a post brexit world, it has wanted to use state subsidies to boost certain companies in the u.k. to create a sort of tech industry here to rival any other countries in the world. the problem is state subsidies is going to contort that. fishing rights, as well. for the french, that is an important issue. there coastal communities, they need to go back to their countries and say look, we

preserved your fishing rights. therefore, we've gotten home a mortar there. the fishing industry only accounts for 0.1% of gdp in the country, but it's an important symbolic industry, as it were. and that is being used to try to appear like a strong-arm tactic in these negotiations in order to put across the message that the u.k. is not going to take any deal at any price. rob: the world health organization is warning that vaccines alone will not eliminate covid-19. they say data suggests it may not offer lifelong protection. the head of the who says there is light at the end of the tunnel that the world's poor shouldn't be overlooked. >> let me be clear. we simply cannot accept a world in which the poor and marginalized are trampled by the rich and powerful in the

stampede for vaccines. this is a global crisis. and the solutions must be shared equitably as global public goods, not as private commodities that widen inequalities and become yet another reason some people are left behind. rob: the mayor of mexico city's called on businesses to help close businesses to help fight a surge in infections. people are urged to work from home and the government will scale back operations. the president encouraged people to cancel travel plans. mexico has the world's fourth biggest caseload, with over 1.1 million recorded infections. we have more on how the president's been changing his approach to the pandemic. reporter: nationally, over 1, 133,000 cases.

the bottom line here is the situation nationwide and mexico city is quite bad, the worst since the start of the outbreak earlier this year. mexico's president, who has been heavily criticized since the beginning of the pandemic for downplaying the severity of the virus for questioning the accuracy -- efficacy of wearing a face mask, he's had a drastic change in tone as of friday when he outlined a set of guidelines for citizens over the holiday season to not participate in gift exchanges, not travel on christmas, or on new year's, to self isolate, to avoid going out of their homes unless they have to, stopping short of urging people to wear a mask. when asked on whether or not he would be willing to enforce a lockdown this week, the mexican president said that he is unwilling to do so, that a lockdown is the sort of thing only authoritarian regimes would do. but again, on friday morning, a

very different change in tone, now urging people to stay in their homes, to only go out if they absolutely have to. this is being interpreted by many as a sign that even though things are quite bad now, they may actually be worse than they appear. rob: the european union's criticized for the metta -- for limiting access for refugees. almost 1000 refugees were living in camps there. many fell during the recent fighting. in agreement with the government, only grants eight organizations access to federally controlled regions. the secretary-general of the norwegian counsel said access is long overdue. >> we're very worried. we had 108 workers there, still 90 on the ground, but many of them had to flee themselves. this has been a warzone for some

time now. 96,000 refugees came to tigre because they thought it was safe there. they fled from persecution. now we don't know at all. hopefully, convoys will reach various parts of tigre, now monday, just over the weekend. we will have access now, next week, for the first time in more than a month. we did distributions in october. but since then, we couldn't do distributions. we couldn't be with the refugees. we know of violence in their, and now -- in there, and nasser don -- now sudan in the refugee camp, the people that flee from tigre tell about violence. they tell about widespread insecurity. there are many more internally

displaced inside tigre than there are the 50,000 refugees who have come here. we need access. we're glad it seems to happen next week. the prime minister has been able to mediate peace between ethiopia. hopefully, there will now also be talks, reconciliation in tigre. we do not need another conflict and another refugee disaster. there are too many people suffering there. rob: authorities in bengal -- shipped -- bangladesh despite pleas to examine the move. more than 600 people avoided -- boarded naval vessels. the u.n. is concerned refugees have been moved against their will. reporter: these refugees are

stateless, homeless, and many have survived -- another future -- and now their future too is looking uncertain. they being moved to an uninhabited island. but their destination is considered by many to be dangerous. the u.n. refugee agency warns it only emerged from the ocean two decades ago, and is prone to storms and flooding. it says no one should go against their will. but some say they have no choice. >> they mercilessly beat my brother and broke teeth. then they brought him here. my brother did not want to go. >> it is enforced. my son-in-law didn't want to go. they literally forced him to board the car. they threatened to kill him otherwise. reporter: the refugees that they bus from here to the city.

the island is about 40 kilometers by c. -- by sea. some say it gives them some hope. >> the bangladesh government is giving us assurance of a better life there. they will give us a good environment, food and shelter, and so we will go there. there are a hundred thousand-one million people living in conditions so crowded -- 800,000-1,000,000 people living in conditions so crowded. >> we are not going back to camps. we don't have anything to prove our citizenship, so we didn't agree to go back. we heard from seniors, as well as television, we will get better facilities. reporter: bangladesh authorities spent years building set -- shelters on the island to accommodate up to 100,000 people. they say it will help to ease overcrowding in the largest refugee camp in the world. that's home to more than one million. the majority fled myanmar more

than three years ago in a military crackdown on muslim minorities. the u.n. called it textbook ethnic cleansing. the u.n. says it doesn't have access to the island. but rights groups say they want to know if they will receive appropriate medical care, ensure their human rights, freedom of movement, education, and once they're there, are they able to come back? laura bertinelli, al jazeera. rob: india's government says it is open to amending some of its agricultural reforms as farmers continue to protest outside the capital. tens of thousands were demanding the government gives them a minimum guaranteed price for their crops. they are worried legislation passed in september will lead to corporate exploitation. the two sides will resume negotiations saturday after a second round of talks ended without an agreement.

the world's biggest cinema group says it's in urgent talks with one of the largest hollywood studios about showing films online. amc wants one of others to change its plan to stream new films online at the same time it's released in theaters. the owner of a cinema chain in europe is one company bypassed by cinemas as they closed reluctance. cinemas are text -- desperate for exclusive content to the reviewers back -- lure viewers back. >> considering we're living in a covered era right now, it's a good thing that the streaming services are getting bigger and bigger. >> i mean it depends on the movie. i like seeing them on both, but i'm kind of a tv guide. for the most part -- tv guy. for the most part. but i like seeing a movie. >> there's nothing like taking a friday night movie date.

i appreciate those. i think everybody does. people want to stay home for the comfort and for the safety. but once america combats covid in a way that's comfortable for everybody, i think everyone will go back to cinema. same with broadway. people will love the feeling of being able to get out of your house and experience it. ♪ this is al jazeera. these are the top stories. the mayor of kuwait says he is pleased with progress. the saudi foreign minister says all the nations involved are close to finalizing an agreement. u.s. president-elect joe biden is urging congress to pass a coronavirus aid bill to help millions of americans struggling during the pandemic. he's 112 million people could lose their own employment benefits if it's not approved by the end of the month.

>> this situation is urgent. if we don't act now, the future will be very bleak. americans need help and they need it now. and they need more to come early next year. but i must tell you, i am encouraged by the bipartisan efforts of the senate around $900 billion package for relief. it's a bipartisan effort. congress, as they work at the details of this relief package, they're going to have to focus on resources for direct public health responses to covid-19. rob: he was president donald trump ordered the withdrawal of most american troops from somalia. about 700 are based their, advising -- there, advising local forces. it's part of trump's plan to reduce u.s. involvement in counterterrorism abroad. the u.k. and e.u. still haven't managed to work out a break the

deal with less than four weeks to go until britain's transition period ends. the eu's chief negotiator says they agreed to pause talks because conditions haven't been met. the british prime minister is now expected to hold negotiations with the european commission president on saturday. the european union's criticized ethiopia for limiting aid access for refugees. many fled from the fighting. in agreement with the government only grants access to federally controlled regions. those are the headlines. the news considered -- continues here after "witness the br other." goodbye.

on "america reframed":

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